"The mere possibility of four more years under the 'leadership' of Dannel Malloy should send a shiver down the spines of folks who have built lives for themselves here, people who today can barely afford to live in the communities where they grew up."

But Republicans will continue to hit Malloy hard on fiscal issues. The governor's plan to give state taxpayers a $55 rebate was scuttled when a budget surplus that was projected in January to top $500 million dissolved to $43 million in May.

More ominously, the nonpartisan Office of Fiscal Analysis projects a deficit for fiscal 2016 of more than $1.3 billion.

The GOP's hammering already started before the Democratic convention was over Friday, as state Republican Chairman Jerry Labriola Jr. issued a statement saying: "The mere possibility of four more years under the 'leadership' of Dannel Malloy should send a shiver down the spines of folks who have built lives for themselves here, people who today can barely afford to live in the communities where they grew up."

Labriola said: "Malloy promised us he'd guide our state down a different path as he criticized his predecessors. Today, despite his record 'shared sacrifice' tax hikes, our state's finances are tenuous at best. He has used the same budget gimmicks he campaigned against, and he's pointing fingers at everyone but himself."

http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-democratic-convention-20140516,0,1771967.story